Seven adults charged with child neglect appeared in court on July 9 for prepreliminary hearings and were ordered to appear again on July 30 with representation.
Alicia Mitchum, Joyce Mitchum, Juanita Mitchum, Ray Mitchum Sr., Ray Mitchum Jr., Rex Mitchum and Jasmine Stewart appeared before District Judge Emily Mueller.They had filled out applications for court-appointed representation, but were denied for not filling them out correctly. Mueller ordered them to re-apply and fill out the applications fully.
They will all appear again at 9 a.m. on July 30.
The group was taken into custody on April 26 and 27, and were all officially charged on April 29 with four felony counts of child neglect each, according to court documents.
The Lincoln County District Attorney’s Office was informed of neglect concerns on April 14 by DHS Child Protective Services and the Davenport Police Department, according to DA Adam Panter. They were also informed that the family was being uncooperative during multiple attempts by DHS and the PD to meet and talk with the four children who were residing in the house.
A search warrant was executed on April 16, and District 23Taskforce Investigator Tony Foreman was able to gain entry into the house.Foremandocumented the poor condition of the home, noting the presence of cockroaches, flies, trash, feces and other filth.
The children were taken into protective custody.